Skype Plus Facebook Equals Death To Google Voice?

With the search engine giant ramping up Google Voice to challenge Skype’s VoIP supremacy, it looks like Skype is looking to align itself with the search king’s nemesis who despises all things Google.

Actually, according to sources close to the situation, Facebook and Skype are poised to announce a significant and wide-ranging partnership that will include integration of SMS, voice chat and Facebook Connect. […]

Facebookâ€™s goal, according to sources: To mesh communications and community more tightly together and add more tools to allow users to do so.

Since it was not going to create an Internet telephony service of its ownâ€“kind of likeÂ not creating a mobile operating systemâ€“Facebook has apparently turned to the Webâ€™s Internet telephony leader. (All Things Digital)

Unless Skype can somehow integrate its video chat service within Facebook chat, I’m highly skeptical whether this deal will help Skype compete against Google Voice’s (as users do not have to pay to own a phone number unlike Skype).

Facebook on the other hand could benefit from this alliance as it would give users a reason to utilize the chat service, especially if they integrate Skype within Facebook’s web interface.

According to All Things Digital Skype’s Facebook feature will beÂ accessibleÂ in version 5.0 which is only available for Windows users (sorry Mac fans), although the company is working on a version for iFans in the not-too-distant future.